Topic: Weather- Clouds and Hurricanes
Purpose: To learn and embody the qualities of different clouds and hurricanes
Prior Knowledge: None
Materials:
- Cards with cloud names
- Tape
- Cloud chart
- Hurricane info sheet
- Interview form
The Truth About Me
1. Students stand in a circle with their places marked by tape on the floor.
2. Hand out cloud cards and have the students tape them to their shirt.
“Each student now has a type of cloud. When I say go, you are going to find the clouds that are similar to you. I will know you have found your group when you stick your back to the back of your other group members.”
3. “Working with your cloud team, identify the qualities/characteristics of your type of cloud. You can use the cloud chart I have posted up on the board to help you. You should be able to identify at least the following characteristics.”
- What level your cloud is found at: low, medium, high, all
- What shape or form your cloud takes. Ie: puffy or layered
- Does your cloud rain?
“I will know you are finished when you sit down with your group together”
4.Have students return to their places in the circle.
“One student will be in the middle of the circle and they are going to state one true thing about their cloud. Ex. The truth about me is that I am layered. If this statement is true for you, then you will move to a new place in the circle. If you are caught in the middle without a space, then you will have to state something true about your cloud and repeat the process.”
Explore: Cloud Sculpting
1. Demonstrate the 3 ways to sculpt a person.
- Moving/touching them. Be sure to ask: may I sculpt you? May I touch you?
- Puppet Strings: Use imaginary strings to shift and move parts of their body
- Mirroring: Partner mirrors whatever you do
2. Have students find a partner that is not the same cloud type as them.
3. Sculpting to explore qualities
- sculpt your partner into a shape that is low or high
- sculpt your partner into a shape that is low or high and puffy or layered
- sculpt your partner into the type of cloud that they are
Explore: A Cloudy day – cloud identification
1. Divide the room into 3 separate areas: low, medium, and high. Use tape on the floor to delineate these areas.
2. Moving through the space
“When I turn on the music, you are going to move through the space like clouds being blown by the wind. When the music stops, you will freeze. I will give you ten seconds to look where you are and take on the qualities of a cloud that might exist in that level.”
3. Identifying the cloud
I will choose a cloud and we will identify it. The rest of the clouds will sit on the floor while this cloud attempts to hold its shape and we identify it.
Describe: What do you see? What are they doing with their body?
Analyze: What qualities are they portraying? What level are they in? What cloud could they be?
Reflect: Do we have enough information to determine? Is this a cloud that actually exists? If not, lets invent a cloud. Think about the parts of a cloud name What should we call this cloud? Why?
Explore: Interview with a Hurricane
1. Model using hurricane info sheet to fill out some facts on your interview sheet.
2. Draw a picture of your hurricane on the back of your interview sheet. “Using the facts that you obtained on the front of your sheet, consider how this hurricane might be feeling? What caused this hurricane to feel this way? Write this information on the inside of your hurricane.”
3. Break class into groups and assign a class/level of hurricane. Have each group fill out the info sheet and imagine some of the hurricane’s feelings/story.
4. Bring up groups and interview hurricane about the damage they are causing and their back story.
Describe: What did we do today?
Analyze: How did you use different tools to learn the qualities of clouds and hurricanes? What was hard? Easy?
Relate: Why do we need to know about clouds and hurricanes? Why do we learn about them?